The Bellator lightweight talent announced Monday night that an
unnamed sponsor has put a stop payment on his check due to Hawn’s
performance in the Bellator
85 main event.

The 2004 Olympic judoka was submitted by lightweight champion
Michael
Chandler in the second round of their headliner, which took
place at UCI Bren Events Center in Irvine, Calif., and aired live
on Spike. Hawn made his claim via Twitter, posting a written
explanation that was allegedly given to him by the sponsor:

“I will not comment on Rick and his fight,” the statement read.
“That is not my place. But what I will tell you is this: I took a
huge chance with him. TV exposure was great ... but it only holds
weight if he wins or puts on a good show. Neither happened. At the
end of the day ... not one sole (sic) will run to [my] store and
buy product because they [saw] Rick loose (sic) the fight. I’ve
made it my career and business to know what nets a return on
investment for the brand ... and this is the No. 1 reason why I DO
NOT hand out money or product to fighters.”

Hawn commented on the explanation, alleging that the sponsor was
still using his likeness on its website even after withdrawing the
payment. The fighter declined to name the sponsor due to pending
legal action.

A former welterweight tournament finalist, Hawn, 36, made the cut
to 155 pounds last year and stormed through the Season 6
lightweight field, besting Ricardo
Tirloni, Lloyd
Woodard and Brent
Weedman to earn his shot at Chandler’s title.

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